Pour Le Merite (BLUE MAX) WITH STYLIZED OAK LEAF BELIEVED TO HAVE BEEN MANUFACTURED IN THE EARLY 1920's AND POSSIBLY USED BY THE FREIKORPS

While it disdained the military, political unrest in Germany had reached a fever pitch by February 1919, with the communist insurrection gaining ground all across Germany, while the organization of the 100,000 man Riechswehr (Army) agreed to by Weimar leaders at Versailles was still in the process of being formed and would be realistically unable, in any event, due to its small size and available logistical support, to control the situation even if it were fully active and up to combat strength.

Into this vacuum stepped an ad hoc organization of former soldiers which became known as the Freikorps. While the actual strength of the 1919 Freikorps will never be actually known, both due to a loss of records and its unofficial status, which the government took pains, subsequent to the defeat of the Communists to insure never received legal sanction, it is estimated that its membership by January 1919 numbered as many as 500,000 combat, support and reserve personnel.

Comprising more than two (200) hundred separate paramilitary militias, the Freikorps, while technically illegal and an obvious embarrassment to the leadership of the Weimar Republic in dealing with their foreign corporate masters, it was apparent by the spring of 1919 that the only force capable of restoring the rule of law and preventing Germany from becoming another Soviet Union was this unofficial army of former WW I combat officers and enlisted personnel, who were joined by a mix of politically active students, young idealists hoping to serve the Fatherland and anti-communist foreign volunteers from a variety of nations.

During its first action against the Polish Army, who had invaded the eastern German province of Silesia in March 1919 to illegally seize this territory before a plebiscite could be held per international agreement to determine its future, the Freikorps distinguished itself as an effective military force. Similar success against other foreign incursions, as well as in bitter street fighting all across Germany against the communists, earned the Freikorps by June 1920 a well deserved military reputation, and more importantly the thanks of the average German citizen.

ABOVE is a full frontal view of the gold oak leaf that accompanies this medal. Clearly visible is the quality of design, composition of materials and age which this particular item commands.

Unfortunately, that level of appreciation did not extend to the Weimar Republic's leadership who, once the foreign incursions and communist threats had been addressed, quickly forgot the Friekorps contribution to the survival of Germany and ordered its disbanding. Consistent with this policy, the Weimar government elected not to award compensation, in the form of pay, pensions or reimbursements of any kind to Freikorps personnel for their service to Germany during the national emergency. Moreover, as was demonstrated by the history of the 1934 Hindenburg Cross previously discussed in this website, they chose to not even honor the sacrifice made by the Freikorps through the issuance of any type of commemorative medal.

Consequently, Freikorps leaders where left to their own resources to produce and award "unofficial" medals to their troops to acknowledge individual acts of personal bravery, and/or to build the morale of units engaging in combat. To do this with the amount of effort, and in a manner that would be quickly recognized by the average German, Freikorps leaders, such as General Ritter von Epp in Munich, who himself was a winner during World War I of the Pour le Merite, simply took to re-issuing imperial awards to Freikorps troops in the absence of any other sanctioned awards or commemorative medals being provided for this purpose by the Weimar Republic.

Surviving examples of such items which I have personally owned over the past forty (40) years include a second class 1914 Iron Cross which has a silver, hand made slip sleeve fitted over its ribbon on which appears a steel helmet, together with the Freikorps unit designation. I have similarly owned a standard first class World War I iron cross, which had been engraved on its reverse to denote its award to a Freikorps Captain in 1919, a black World War I wound badge with the Freikorps unit number scratched into the steel helmet on its front and a Baltic cross which had been crudely engraved on its brass portion to identify the winner as and the Freikorps action involved.

In keeping with the unique, non standard design of the gold oak leaves accompanying this medal, together with the obvious age, construction characteristics and composition of materials exhibited by both this oak leaf and the Pour le Merite medal offered here, as well as being non maker marked, I believe that this item may have been one such re-awarded Freikorps item from the 1919-20 period that was probably presented to an individual who had previously won the Blue Max during World War I.